Kakar is in

Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar is in the saddle. As Caretaker Prime Minister he rose to the top as a dark horse. The fact that his candidature was unanimous at the end of the day, and got instant approval from the Presidency, speaks of his acceptability for the high office, which will closely be watched as the nation goes to polls in an abject divisive environment. But his mantle was his meticulous role as a Senator, a thinking lawmaker, and that too from the most desolate province of Balochistan. While Kakar has throughout his public career espoused for civil liberties, rights of the minorities and the downtrodden, alongside being an ardent advocate of the state writ, he will be writing history as he delivers on his role of holding impartial elections within the stipulated constitutional period.

The choice of BAP senator was, indeed, surprising. Elected to the Senate for a six-year term in 2018, he was part of the coalitions with both the political dispensations in the dissolved parliament. This is why his elevation should be taken as a denominator, as he and his cabinet are entrusted with the gigantic task of supervising elections. Kakar has a responsibility to reach out to all political voices and ensure that his administration is impartial, and comes to address the grievances that have bifurcated society on partisan lines. Likewise, the learned senator will be doing a great job as he overcomes odds by providing the nation with serenity in this hour of turbulence.

As Kakar hails from Balochistan, he is well aware of the problems that have kept the nation in tatters to this day. He must do his bit to patch up on the state of confrontation in his home province, and erect an order of justice and fair play that could be carried ahead at ease by the elected representatives in times to come. Similarly, while overseeing the economy in the interim period, he will be tested for making life easy by cracking down on inflation and walking the tight rope with the international lenders. But his legacy will be to hold free and fair elections and sign off in humility.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 13^th, 2023.

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